The origins of the 40’s go back to 1978, Birmingham, in English lands, goes back to the height of flare and ska, thanks to the fact that it goes back to the UB era in bands like Special and Madness.

With a greater bent on melodic reggae (meaning: pop), Ali Campbell’s band punctuated the 80’s and early 90’s with hits like ‘Red Red Wine’, ‘I Got You Babe’, ‘Please Don’t Make’ Me Cry’, ‘Homely Girl’ and ‘Can’t Help Falling In Love’, versions of themes from as diverse backgrounds as Neil Diamond, Sonny & Cher, The Chi-Lites, Elvis Presley and Eric Donaldson.

Not being, by definition, a ‘covers’ band, it was almost always thanks to the reggae treatment of someone else’s hits that the UB40 found them on sales charts. At the Rock in Rio Lisboa concert, in front of a much more generous crowd than those received, Bush this version of UB40 (there are 2 on tour, and it only has the original singer, Ali Cambpell) did it right, keeping the ‘He I Am (Come and Take Me)’, and ended with everything Bela Vista wanted to hear, ‘Can’ Help Falling In Love’ and ‘Red Vinho Vermelha’.

Ali Campbell maintains a silky, shapely voice, the band of 7 does not ‘invent’ (bass, guitar, drums, percussion, keyboards, a couple of brass, two singers in the choir), and appreciating the audience is the mission, both in the incitements constants of the percussionist, as in the wise way in which versions of more popular themes intrude into the related – the case of Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’.

The height, applause for the festive concert and very well that we see on stage are confused every time ‘bruás’ are heard each time the side screens display the affection data of couples in the audience. It can be said that the “revenge of the 80s” on this penultimate day of Rock in Rio started here. And the watchword, for now, is love.